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Sunday, May 9, 2010

Cinnamon Raisins Bread

Baked this bread for breakfast and lunch tomorrow at the office. Made 2 loaves and gave one away to the neighbour since she gave me some popiah (oriental styled vegetable crepes) for lunch on Saturday.

The raisins add sweetness to the bread and I added the cinnamons mixed with sugar in the middle for more sweetness and fragrance so I can eat it on its own in the office. Saved me some hassle of buttering the bread lol!

For those who wish to try this recipe, please visit this site. She has a different version of the bread in her blog. She explained in full details for those who wishes to make the bread by hands. I am giving the details as to how I did my loaves here, which is kneading by machine:-

1. Stir together the flour, sugar, salt, yeast, and cinnamon in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add the egg, shortening, buttermilk, and water. Mix the ingredients on low speed with the paddle attachment until they are mixed and then change to dough hook and continue kneading until the dough is just beginning to stop sticking to the bowl. Dough should be soft, tacky but not sticky. Add raisins and continue kneading at low speed or you can mix in the the raisins by hand at this stage to distribute them evenly and to avoid crushing them too much. I was too lazy to knead so I used the machine at low speed. The raisins look fine:D

2. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, turning over to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size.

4. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces. Roll out into rectangles and spread the cinnamon/sugar/butter mixture on the centre of the dough and roll up tightly into loaves. Place the loaf into prepared pans and proof at room temperature for 60 to 90 minutes, or until the dough crests above the lips of the pans and is nearly doubled in size.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 deg C) with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Place the loaf pans on a sheet pan, making sure they are not touching each other.

6. Bake the loaves for 20 minutes. Rotate the pan 180 degrees for even baking and continue baking for another 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the oven. The finished breads should register 190 degrees F (85 deg C) in the center and be golden brown on top and lightly golden on the sides and bottom. They should make a hollow sound when thumped on the bottom. I relied on the hollow sound for doneness.

7. Immediately remove the breads from their pans. Cool on rack completely before slicing.
(From The Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhart)

We also had this delicious roast chicken with homemade brown sauce for dinner. All prepared by Ken, the apprentice chef...not bad, for a first time cooking this dish by himself... hmmm, perhaps the sauce could be thicker? Good job the vegetables are still green and not overcooked.

@Kristy...Thanks:D@Natasha....Tasted good too:D@Kim...Could see from your blog that you had a wonderful Mother's Day...mine's pretty normal.@Mary..Thanks Mary and hope you'd had a wonder day too.@Juliana....I have seen your beautiful bakes too and bookmarked a few to try:D@Cathy..The recipe is a very good one, the bread stayed soft even after the next day!Have a nice day all! :D